Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Homemade thin crust pizza

Attempt at my homemade thin crust parma ham pizza, with mozzerella, parmesan and cheddar cheese. Almost a 30-minute meal, pretty simple to attempt if you have a dough mixer. However I like to do it with my hands though (probably because I enjoy playing with it in the process). I used a classic red sauce base, no olive oil for this recipe because I thought the parma ham would be sufficient. Toppings are pretty much the same - You can choose to have any type of pizza toppings as long as you get the dough right.

I think I started with trial-and-error, I never really achieved a "perfect" or "amazing" one but I believe it comes with practice and experience. I like my pizzas thin-crusted; it's best to have a rolling pin so your dough gets stretched it the process to achieve extra-thin crust.

For the dough:
Makes about 4 6-inch pizzas - pretty much bite/ pan-sized

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 220C at least 15 minutes before making the pizza.
2. Add water and yeast into a mixing bowl, stir and dissolve the yeast.
3. Add flour and salt in the mixture, and knead until flour is mixed in and dough is smooth.If your dough is still pretty sticky and moist, add a little flour at a time, knead it again until it is smooth.
4. Allow your dough to rise if possible if you can (I needed a quick meal so I didn't)
5. Once your dough is ready, cover it with a wet towel over the bowl while toppings are prepared.
6. Using a bench scraper, divide the dough into 4, and setting the shape onto a parchment paper.
7. Use the heel of your hand and fingers to press and stretch the dough or a rolling pin, and shelve off access shape.
8. Spoon classic sauce onto the pizza and spreading it out to the edges, and fill it with your desired toppings.
9. Bake for about 5 mins, rotate as you remove the parchment paper, and bake for another 3-5 minutes depending on your crust.
10. Cheese should be toasted and crust almost golden-brown.

You're set! There are many different types of toppings that you can explore with your dough. I'd really want to try it again sometime, but definitely not during reading week!